Relating to the establishment of the Iowa violent death reporting system

This bill relates to the Iowa violent death reporting system. The national violent death reporting system was implemented in 2005 under the purview of the centers for disease control and prevention of the United States department of health and human services. The CDC provides grants to states, including Iowa, to collect data on violent deaths to enter into a national database. Iowa began collecting data beginning in calendar year 2015. The existing Iowa violent death reporting system is authorized, generally, as a duty of the state board of health and the department of public health (DPH), and under other general provisions of law. The bill would specifically establish the reporting system under a separate Code section. The bill establishes the Iowa violent death reporting system (reporting system) in DPH; specifies the duties of the reporting system and the director of public health including the establishment of an advisory group of data providers and interested stakeholders to make recommendations relating to the reporting system; requires that the reporting system complies with data collection guidance provided by the CDC national violent death reporting system; provides for the sharing and disclosure of information, data, and records with the reporting system by law enforcement agencies and the medical examiner relating to a violent death investigation and for purposes of administering the reporting system; includes confidentiality protections; provides for assistance from other departments, agencies, offices of the state, and political subdivisions of the state in providing information, data, and records and in otherwise assisting in the execution of the duties of the reporting system; and directs DPH to adopt administrative rules to establish, maintain, and administer the reporting system. The bill defines “Iowa violent death reporting system” and “violent death” for the purposes of the bill.